The Wandering Child
by MoonLitIsle
Summary: It's hard to runaway, especially from yourself. Rated for language, first fanfic so enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

It was hard to breathe. He knew what was happening, had experienced it many times and was completely aware that all he needed to do was just _wake up _but that didn't stop it from being just as terrifying as the first time he had dreamt it. The world was a mass of upside down blurred images streaked with red. Screams filled his ears and continuously echoed in his brain; they were non-sensical and jumbled but he knew their true meaning.

_Help me…_

His limbs were stuck fast, weighed down heavily by rocks.

_Why won't you help me?_

His hands were sweat slicked and scrambling out to something, someone but whoever they were just weren't reaching back.

_Wake up… why won't you just _**wake** **up**_?_

All at once it seemed as though someone had pulled the cloth bag from his head and everything dissolved into chaos as sirens and engines screeched with a passion, flashing lights almost blinded him from different directions. But none of that mattered because of what was next to him or more who was next to him…

_No… please just __**no**__… I don't… I can't…_

The blooded face with unseeing eyes was all it took for him to open his mouth and scream.

"**Dad!**"

His body came into motion and suddenly he was sitting up and staring at a darkened room, the last letter dying on his lips as he exhaled shakily. It was just a dream, and just as always he wished that was all it was. Swinging his legs round so that he could sit on the edge of bed, he blinked back frustrating tears and pushed back the old hurts to the corners of his mind.

With a sigh he pushed himself into standing position and pulled himself off the rickety bed that was temporarily his, waiting until his vision cleared and his head became less fuzzy he then ventured off into the bathroom.

As he looked in the mirror it was hard to recognise himself compared to what he was like just a year ago and the monstrous change from the three years before that. He looked worn, dark bruise like marks were positioned under his dark brown eyes. His once long brown hair was now cut short with only a slight fringe dusting his forehead. He was now an average height for his age of sixteen but also skinnier than most with pale skin which combined with everything else made him seem sickly.

The cold water was refreshing and as he scrubbed his face his eyes were drawn to the odd looking blue wrist-band wrapped around his arm. He hated it, the thing had brought him nothing but pain and loneliness but for all the anger and hatred he found in himself whenever he looked at the band he could never throw it away. For all the hurt it had brought him and as much as he hated to admit it, it also brought him some of his happiest memories, back before that pain and loneliness had turned him bitter to the world that the band brought with it.

"Justin?"

Only years of self-control kept him from attacking the poor women behind him as he jumped. After his contemplation in the bathroom he had ventured downstairs for a glass of water. It had been 3:14 when he'd sat down it was now 6:20. _Oops…_ He cringed as he faced the glare that told him she knew exactly what he'd been doing which was not sleeping as it should have been.

Abbey Carter was the orphanages main caretaker, she had been there when he'd first been left at the age of ten and had welcomed him back with open arms at the age of fifteen. Time had treated her well, even with the stern frown on her face the laugh lines around her warm green eyes and mouth were un-missable. Her blonde hair only slightly streaked with white was scrapped back into a messy bun. She was in her late fifties, something he had found out accidently, but was as rampant and formidable as if she were in her twenties. She made living there bearable.

"Justin, stop thinking those thoughts right now mister," she sighed her eyes softening and her frown replaced by an easy going smile.

He shrugged, offering her a sheepish smile. Talking wasn't something he did a lot of these days, words had often gotten him into trouble so he had lost all will power in using them at all.

"Is this about the move today sweetheart?" Oh shit, he had forgotten about that completely and that just made this day seem even worst.

Little Angels orphanage was crumbling at the seams and was in desperate need of repair, a need that unfortunately meant most of the kids, including himself, were being relocated to different homes for the time being. Abbey took a seat opposite him at the table, staring him straight in the eye.

"Your new social worker is nice, young but is great with kids. He should be seeing as I mentored him for a while." This was new information; there weren't a lot of people she could have mentored in the last few years between the times he'd been there. With that new though he tuned back in to what she was saying.

"This will be good for you Justin, I think you'll be surprised at what you could find in store for you there."

With that cryptic message and a last parting smile with a sly wink she stood back up and left the kitchen as quickly as she had came. She was normally a very straight forward talking person compared to the other workers who would either baby the kids or ignore them completely, so that last message in itself had been strange coming from her.

He stretched, maybe she was right and he was just being pessimistic but he couldn't help looking at this new day with a feeling of dread.

With a put upon sigh that only teenagers seemed capable of he pushed himself up and dragged himself towards his room to grab what few belongings he had left that he could call his own and spend what little time before the chaos of the orphanage began and he lost what little security he had found in this old building, to relax in his room with that book he'd been meaning to read.

Maybe Reefside wouldn't be too bad.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN - Disclaimer: I own nothing, no-one (except my OCs Abbey Carter and Estelle) no matter how much I may wish I did. Enjoy!**

Fuck. Just fuck, how he could have been so stupid to have thought that maybe he would finally catch a break he didn't know. It was what had led him to sitting in the forest utterly lost, curled up by a tree scrubbing at the tears that traitorously spilled down his face.

Only an hour ago he had been sitting in Abbey's tatty old car with only Abbey herself for company, trying to think of all the bright sides to the move. The drive had been pleasant and Justin had been pleased to find that Reefside was a pleasant enough town; there had even been a cyberspace café that sounded interesting enough that he wouldn't mind checking it out.

The blue sign by the gated entrance proudly announced they'd arrived at Reefside Orphanage. The large red house encompassed by a green background of trees, was promising. It was reasonably sized, obviously new and looked less run down and more homely than most orphanages he had stayed in.

It wasn't until he was pulling his small blue suitcase out of the car that the front door opened. It was who stepped out that caused his jaw to drop and eyes to widen. The man who stepped out hadn't changed much in the years that had passed. He had filled out in muscle but his smiling blue eyes and short spikey hair remained the same. The navy suit trousers and dark red formal shirt seemed unusual and constricting on such a free-spirited person.

The suitcase suddenly weighed a ton and slipped through his numb fingers with a thud as it hit the ground. He stared unblinkingly at the man barely six feet in front of him, because it couldn't possibly be him. As far as Justin was concerned this man had disappeared off the face of the planet right when he needed him the most, when his world had started crumbling down around him.

Everything suddenly clicked into place, exactly who Abbey could have possibly mentored in his time away from Angel Grove, who his new social worker was. It couldn't be.

_Rocky?_

It felt like eternity was passing by as they entered into a standoff. Rocky broke it first, sighing as his smile dropped slightly his eyes softening a touch more if possible. He opened his mouth as though to speak but Justin had already started running.

"Justin! Justin wait please!"

The words faded into background noise to Justin as he ran. Just ran away. What else could he do? He'd never prepared to come face to face with one of them again and he couldn't bear to hear their excuses and reasons. What if it had been his fault? Had he been too clingy? Too young? Just so god damned annoying that the phone calls and e-mails just went silent as though they had never been there to start with.

That was how he now found himself utterly confused, betrayed and most importantly heartbroken in the middle of the woods. Emotions warring between themselves for control and he didn't have the energy to stop the sobs rising in his throat as he wept, alone again.

Of all the kids' folders that ended up on his desk, Rocky never thought he would see Justin Stewart's. After recovering from his back injury Rocky had worked hard to get his degree in social work and child care, once Abbey had found out what he was doing she had instantly taken him under her wing and mentored him. Volunteering at the orphanage had been one of the best decisions he had ever made. After fast tracking through his degree and two years of hard but satisfying work, at twenty-two years of age he found himself in charge of the newly built Reefside orphanage working his dream job.

So when the folder for Reefside's newest resident to be was handed to him by Estelle, the old quirky administrator for the orphanage, his heart had dropped into the pit of his stomach, he had barely managed a smile as he sent Estelle on her way. His hands had trembled as he opened the folder; Justin was supposed to be happy at home with his father, not still stuck in the care system. The further he read the further his heart dropped, until it rested firmly in his feet.

In short everything had gone wrong for Justin just as it had all gone right for him. It appeared that Justin and his father had been having problems, the then current social worker had noted that there was tension between them as though they'd been arguing continuously. Before a conclusion was reached Justin had lost his father in a terrible car accident much like the one that had taken Justin's mother beforehand. When Justin lost the last semblance of family he'd had, he'd also lost his voice. As far as the doctors were concerned Justin could speak, he just chose not to.

Rocky stared at the tea in his hands and then glanced at his companion sitting opposite to him. "Maybe I should have gone after him," he repeated for what must have been the sixth time in the last ten minutes.

"Rocky, he needs to process everything before you bombard him, trust me he needs the time to himself. Justin is a very solitary person." Abbey replied.

"He didn't used to be," he muttered running a hand through his hair. Abbey looked at him sympathetically as she set down her mug.

"A lot has changed Rocky, you can't expect him to be the same twelve year old you once knew." She said firmly.

"I know, I just wish… what does it matter anyway? I should be concentrating on the Justin of now not dwelling on the past."

"See, now all you have to do is regain his trust you did it once Rocky, just be patient," Abbey advised. He nodded his smile back in full force with a determined set to his jaw.

Reefside was where Rocky had found his new home, but had also reintroduced him to his past roots. He internally winced, if Justin reacted this badly to only seeing him how would he react when he found out that Reefside had almost become the new Angel Grove? Rangers seemed to be gravitating to this general location, out of fate or coincidence he wasn't sure but he knew it was going to make his job all the more difficult. He didn't fancy the idea of trying to explain to certain past rangers that they couldn't just storm into the orphanage and greet Justin as though it was just yesterday that they'd last seen him. He would give Justin an hour, maybe forty-five minutes until he initiated a one man man-hunt after him and if necessary as only a last resort reinforcements would be called in. He groaned but until then he had several dreaded phone calls to make.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Thanks to all those who've taken time to read my story, you've made me one very happy person! Also big thanks for the reviews, follows and even a favourite! I'm sort of just letting my imagination run wild with this (daydreaming up scenarios in class) so I hope you're enjoying it as much as I am. **

_Italics – Thoughts_

He didn't know how long he had been sitting there, long enough that his back was stiff from being curled up and his butt was numb from sitting on the hard ground. It had been about 4:30 when they'd arrived at the orphanage and the sun was now starting to set; it was winter so he guessed that at the very least an hour and a half had passed by.

He was slightly amazed Rocky hadn't found him yet; he had managed to be one of the only volunteers at the orphanage who had no trouble tracking him down whenever he had strayed too far from the place.

**Snap!**

Justin swung his body around at the sudden noise, almost succeeding in scrambling to his feet before he was assaulted and knocked down by a large black missile. The missile as such was actually a black Russian Terrier. The dog was content to climb all over Justin, sniffing and licking him causing giggles to rise out of Justin as the dog slobbered happily all over him.

"Are you lost too?" He whispered to the dog. His voice was raspy and weak; it was always strange to hear his own voice after so long of not using it. It was slightly painful to even attempt to talk and he knew he worried people by not speaking, but he felt he owed it to _him_. If it hadn't been for his inability to keep his mouth shut maybe he'd still be at home with his dad, alive.

There had been a lot of things wrong with his relationship with his father. At first they'd been happy at the prospect of starting a new life together but so much had happened and a lot of it was still left unresolved.

Justin himself had changed a lot, he'd had to grow up and deal with the loss of his mother and the burden of being a ranger without his father there to go home to at night and lean on. His father had become more solemn in the loss of his wife and had recognised but hadn't been able to deal with the massive change in his son. And although Justin never said it he still felt betrayed that his father had abandoned him so soon after his mother's death, concentrating on only his own grief and none of his son's.

The tension from this often spilled over and erupted into loud volatile fights with big gaps of awkward tense silences between them. It had gotten to the point that Justin couldn't bear the idea of going home to his father every day, a knot forming in his stomach at the anticipation of another fight full of spite filled words and hurt. He had often skipped meal just to avoid sitting opposite his father, but now he would give anything to sit in even those tense silences with him. His father's final words that had spiked that last fight often haunted his every hour.

"_I'm tired Justin, I'm just so tired of it all. This was a bad idea."_

"_Look if you didn't want to go to the damn cinema you could have said so __**at home**__!" He'd angrily retorted._

"_That's not what I __**meant**__. I should never have come back…"_

"Watson! There you are." Justin snapped out of his reverie and tensed at the voice, his fists clenched defensively at his sides as he looked up. The dog, Watson, bounded off Justin and scampered over to the owner of the voice. The woman was tall with long straight black hair; she was bundled up in a long yellow coat with black legging and brown boots. Her facial features suggested she of Vietnamese origins; she smiled at him and Justin felt himself relax slightly.

"Sorry if he jumped you, he's a bit too friendly at times." Justin just shrugged with an uneasy smile.

"Are you alright sweetheart?" Her voice was soft and her smiling face turned into a concerned frown. It was then that Justin remembered that he'd been crying and instantly wondered how bad he looked. He bit his lip unsure what to do, he couldn't verbally communicate with her because that would defeat the point of not talking. He felt frustration bubble up in his throat and wondered if it was too late to turn around and run.

She opened her mouth as though to speak again but was interrupted by a separate voice.

"Trini, I see you found… who's this?" Justin recognised the man who stopped next to Trini, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, but he couldn't place where exactly. He was tall with broad shoulders and thick muscled arms. His black hair was neatly styled and he wore a leather jacket over a red shirt with jeans. He bent slightly to pat the top of Watson's head and when he looked back up at Justin, recognition flashed across his face for a moment before going blank.

"Do I know you from somewhere?" He asked. Justin paled, _of course_ he realised recognition finally setting in, _it had to be my luck_. Jason Lee Scott, Earth's first Red Ranger and if he had to guess by the pictures Rocky had once shown him, the women standing next to him was Trini Kwan, Earth's first Yellow Ranger. Running was becoming more attractive by the second.

Justin shook his head and stumbled backwards, preparing to leg it but Watson ruined that in a second. The dog leaped up at him, gracelessly knocking him to his butt. He groaned, even the dog was against him. He managed to shove Watson off him aided by Jason, who was much too close to Justin for his liking if he was going to make his clean getaway.

"Justin Stewart, where have you been? Do you have any idea how worried I was?" _Oh great, _Justin thought _and now Rocky's here, why not just throw a freaking ranger reunion?_ Before he had time to react he was drawn into a tight hug that threatened to squeeze the life out of him. After an embrace that lasted much too long in Justin's opinion, Rocky pulled back and Justin tried to smother the guilt he felt at seeing the hurt and worry in Rocky's eyes. Rocky then turned to the couple who were staring at them and winced when he realised why Justin was so tense.

"Jason, Trini may I introduce you to Justin Stewart. Justin as you may know replaced me as Blue Turbo. Justin this is Jason and Trini Lee Scott" He sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck, with the hand that wasn't currently gripping Justin's shoulder, as he said this. He could practically feel Justin's eyes burning a hole through his skull.

"Of course, we met briefly just after you're back injury. I don't believe you've met my wife Trini though." Jason replied. Trini smiled, reaching out a hand to Justin.

"It's nice to finally meet you Justin." Justin shook her hand, trying to return the smile but found that it turned out more as a grimace. He dropped her hand and wrapped his arms around his stomach, turning his stare to the ground. The adults exchanged looks above his head in the awkward silence until Rocky cleared his throat.

"We should probably get back if we're going to make it in time for dinner Justin, I'll see you guys later." They exchanged their goodbyes before finally parting ways. Rocky leading Justin back to the orphanage with a firm arm wrapped around his shoulders, he was not risking losing him again.

It was several hours later that Rocky found himself in Trini and Jason's living room, nursing a mug of coffee.

"He's very quiet compared to the last time I met him," Jason broke the silence from his position next to Trini, opposite from Rocky.

Rocky sighed, "Justin has selective mutism, has done since he lost his father. I shouldn't really be telling you guys any of this. It's going to be hard enough when I see Tommy tomorrow to try and explain."

"But Justin isn't just some normal kid," Jason interrupted. "He's one of us, once a ranger always a ranger."

"What I don't understand is why haven't we seen Justin before now?" Trini queried, a frown marring her face. "I mean there have been plenty of ranger reunions before now; in the last three years alone there's been at least two occasions a year."

Rocky bit his lip, exhaling through his nose as he set his mug down. "When Justin went back to living with his father, we all kept in regular contact. I called at least once a week, if not more and I know Tommy, Adam, Kat and Tanya did the same. Adam also told me from Carlos that when the newer rangers went into space, they tried to contact Justin as much as they could, which being up in space wasn't easy." Rocky took a breath, fiddling with the leather bracelet on his wrist.

"However about two maybe three months after the other rangers had gone into space, Tommy, Adam and I went to surprise visit Justin when we had some time off college and work. His dad told us he didn't want us in contact with Justin so much anymore, that he wanted Justin to have friends his own age."

"I don't like where this is going," Jason muttered.

"You shouldn't," Rocky continued, eyes hard. "I can understand, I guess. We were six years older than Justin, which probably seemed strange in itself, and his dad wanted Justin to settle down into life with friends his own age and for Justin to get used to having him back as a parental figure. After that we backed off a bit and communication on Justin's end went quiet too, I suspect that was more his father's influence. Anyway about a month after that Kat got sick of not being able to speak to Justin when she wanted and went to their house. Stormed right up and got the shock of her life when she found a different family occupying the place. We got the message and all agreed we'd wait until Justin contacted us, but after half a year of silence we caved and tried to track him down even if just to make sure he was safe."

"We never did find him, so we gave up. I now wish more than anything that we hadn't." Rocky pinched the bridge of his nose. "You can imagine my surprise when his location was just dropped onto my desk a week ago. I didn't tell anyone because I needed to see what state he was in before I dumped a bunch of ex-rangers on him. When you found him out in the woods it was after he'd run at just the site of me. I just wish I knew what to do to help. I mean I'm his social worker now and it's different but it's been so many years that I just feel so helpless when it comes to helping him."

Jason leaned over and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder "Don't. He has all of us here now and we're not going to leave him alone anymore. He's going to absolutely hate us, he'll be so sick of seeing us."

"Especially when Tommy finds out," Trini smiled "There'll be no escape even in school. He'll set the four dino rangers on him from every angle. He will be attending Reefside High, won't he? I remember hearing from Tommy he was a child genius like Billy."

Rocky grimaced, "that was another thing, Justin would have graduated by now but his dad moved him back into the correct age group. He wanted Justin to be "normal"." He crooked his fingers in disgust at the word.

"I know you're not meant to speak ill of the dead but man, I'm really beginning to dislike Justin's father." Jason groused.

Trini put a sympathetic hand on her husband's arm, "Honey, whilst I don't agree with what he did you can't blame his father for trying to do what he thought was best for his son."

Jason gave his wife a peck on the lips and smiled sweetly at her. "You're too good, Trini." He then looked at Rocky with a sly smile. "So I take it we'll be seeing Justin at the ranger beach party next week then."

Rocky face palmed and groaned, "ooh, how am I gonna convince him to go to that?"

"When Tommy and Kat find out, he may not get a choice."


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Thanks for all the continued support of this story, and sorry for the slightly longer than usual wait!**

He'd been kidding about having a ranger reunion; he hadn't actually expected that such a thing even existed. But here Rocky was looking at him with such hopeful eyes after having spent a good half hour trying to persuade him to go.

"Come on Justin, wouldn't it be better to meet them all willingly than have them coming knocking down the door?" He had a point and Justin sighed dejectedly. With a lot of trepidation he gave his final consenting nod and watched as Rocky's face took on a cheshire cat like smile. Seeing Justin's uneasiness Rocky hurried to reassure him.

"It's only a couple hours and if you're really that uncomfortable we can leave anytime. Plus look on the Brightside, you can meet some of your classmates before you start on Monday." Justin sighed again; it hadn't taken much for him to discover that this town had rangers and it would figure his luck was just bad enough that they'd end up in class together.

Rocky watched Justin's face for any substantial reaction. Rocky had spent a considerable amount of time in the last few days focusing his attention on Justin and it had gotten to the point at which they were somewhat friends again, comfortable enough together but there was still that missing link.

Rocky felt like he was back when he'd first met Justin, they'd had a tentative relationship and at this moment Rocky was the only one Justin even remotely trusted around him. However unlike the first time they'd met there was a whole new level of hurt between them that Rocky feared would never be gapped.

The last few days had been spent with Rocky talking, filling in the blanks for Justin over the last few years but he never broached on the subject of Justin's dad and what had happened all those years ago. He didn't have the confidence that Justin wouldn't run and disappear forever on him if he did and he felt guilty about tarnishing even slightly the memory Justin had left of his father.

Rocky hadn't been the only one who'd been making an effort with Justin, Jason and Trini had shown up on the one afternoon Rocky had been swamped with work and insisted on taking Justin to dinner.

When he'd talked to them afterwards he'd discovered that their evening had gone much the same as how Rocky had spent his time with Justin. They'd shared numerous stories with Justin, overjoyed that Jason had even managed to get a laugh from Justin after a story about his infamous patient the elderly Mrs Morris who hated absolutely everyone but Jason, flirting shamelessly whenever she saw him. The couple had built an easy relationship with Justin, helped with the fact that they had no history with him. Rocky hoped that if this really did all go to hell in a hand basket he'd at least have them to lean back on.

"We'll be picking up Adam on the way, after all this time he's still a horrific driver and his car ends up in the shop practically every week. I'm beginning to think the car does it on purpose to get away from him," Rocky joked pulling a small smile from Justin. It was a small victory in Rocky's books but he took each and every one of them happily.

"I'll leave you to get ready then bud, we'll go in about half an hour." Rocky left with a parting smile and hair ruffle, which garnered him an amused huff of air from Justin, something which delighted him to no end.

Once Rocky was gone Justin flopped back onto his bed and groaned rolling onto his side. How on earth was he meant to handle not just seeing them all again but having to deal with new people who would judge him instantly upon meeting him? It being a beach party didn't help. Justin glanced down at his arm. After his car accident Justin had been left with scars which covered both his front and back, luckily all but one would be covered by a short sleeved t-shirt and some long baggy shorts.

A long white line stretching haphazardly from his wrist to just before his elbow covered his right arm. It had been trapped and cut into by a sharp piece of metal coming out of his door. Rocky knew basically everything from his folder and so had never reacted upon seeing any of his scars and if Jason or Trini had noticed anything they'd never hinted or given away that they had.

He liked the young couple; they were a refreshing change to all the other adults that he'd met. They didn't talk down to him and were seemingly unperturbed by his muteness, happily sharing stories with him as though he were an old friend. He'd discovered that Trini was a lawyer something that fit her calm and no nonsense manner, whilst Jason was studying as a resident to become a doctor working in the nearby hospital; the career suiting his caring nature which belied his hulk of a frame. He closed his eyes; surely if they were nice logically the others would be too he just needed to convince himself of that.

Rocky was sorely tempted to ignore the incoming call on his phone, but knew if he did that he'd never hear the end of it.

"No Tommy, he hasn't changed his mind in the last two minutes since you last called and yes I am absolutely sure you don't need to meet us before we go there."

"I wasn't going to ask that," Rocky could practically hear him pouting over the phone.

"Right, so what did you want then?"

"I wanted your advice on what to tell any of the rangers who haven't yet met Justin, particularly Connor, Ethan, Trent and Kira." That stopped Rocky in his tracks, he'd been so worried about Justin seeing the rangers he already knew he'd completely forgot about the ones he didn't.

"Erh, I guess it'd only be fair to tell them that if they talk to Justin not to expect him to talk back but I guess the best thing we can do is not to make a big deal about it. Me, Adam, Jason and Trini are all going to be running interference so he doesn't get overwhelmed anyway; just make sure they don't all pounce on him at once."

"They're not going to like that; they've been really excited to meet the youngest ever ranger on Earth who happens to be their age. Also I'm not sure how long I can fend the Astro Rangers off, it was hard enough to get them to agree not to zeta down to Earth the moment we told them that Justin was here."

Rocky sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, a habit that had grown of late. "Just remind them that them taking a more slow approach is what's best for Justin. He won't react well to them all jumping on him at the party. The poor kid is reluctant enough as it is, I…" Rocky breathed out, "I just don't want to lose him again Tommy, once was hard enough."

"It won't come to that Rocky, you take care of Justin and I'll figure out how to handle the others. I'll see you soon man."

"Yeah, later Tommy." Rocky ended the call and thumped into his desk chair. He decided he was going to follow Charlie Brown's philosophy and dread one day at a time; hopefully it would save him a few grey hairs.

Meeting Adam had gone off without a hitch surprisingly. Adam had jovially greeted them, giving Rocky a bear hug and pat on the back before turning to Justin. Adam had cut his hair short and spiked it and much like both Rocky and Jason he had gained muscle mass in the years since he had last seen him and Justin wondered if this would be a reoccurring theme with all the male rangers.

Adam had smiled happily before pulling Justin into a loose hug giving Justin the opportunity to pull away. He didn't. Although Justin had tried to distance himself from the emotions he felt when it came to the rangers, he couldn't help but feel secure in the hug and even a little pleased at the bigger smile he got once Adam had let go.

The journey to the beach was relaxed, filled with Rocky and Adam joking with one another and Justin simply listening to them. It was sad when the journey came to a stop. Justin's entire body tensed as he looked at the beach, seeing a large group of figures in the distance.

"It won't be as bad as you're imagining it Justin," He looked over at Adam who was looking earnestly at him back.

"Anyone gives you any trouble, and Tommy will go all mama bear on them." Rocky joined in smirking mischievously. Justin let out a huff of air and smiled rolling his eyes before pulling himself from the car. It was probably the only time he was grateful that Rocky had his arm around his shoulders. It kept him grounded from all the possible bad thoughts of what could happen.

Rocky and Adam bantered back and forth between themselves but Justin knew they were doing it for him.

"Justin!" _Okay ouch_, Justin was just about able to steady himself against the force of a full grown women slamming into him. He was only slightly surprised when she pulled back a bit revealing herself as Ashley.

"Ash, I don't think that's what Tommy had in mind as a greeting. Nice to see you again Justin." Justin looked over Ashley's shoulder and found Andros to the right of him. Andros smiled and squeezed his shoulder before stepping back slightly to give him space, gently detaching Ashley as he went. He'd never liked Andros more than he did in that moment.

"Look at how much you've grown. TJ, Carlos and Cassie have been dying to see you again and I know Zhane and Karone really want to meet you, I think they're playing volleyball with the more senior rangers. I'll just go grab them," Ashley babbled nervously before grabbing Andros and dragging him to where the volleyball was set up, but not before Andros sent him a sympathetic smile. Justin stood there bewildered and wide eyed at what had just happened.

"See, that wasn't so bad. I think." He'd almost forgotten Rocky and Adam were behind him and turned to them still looking slightly shocked with a raised eyebrow. Justin wasn't sure how to take that but it left him feeling slightly desolate at such a short greeting after so many years.

Rocky smiled at him, once again placing his arm around his shoulders. "Come on let's go and meet the Ninja Storm rangers," he said determinedly dragging Justin towards them and praying for a saner greeting.

"That was rather abrupt Ash," Andros hedged holding onto Ashley's hand as they took the long way round to the others. He looked back over his shoulder in time to see Rocky place an arm around Justin's shoulders.

"I know, it's just…" Andros turned back to his girlfriend, reassuringly squeezing her hand.

"Just," He encouraged.

"He's changed, you only have to take one look at him to see that and I just got nervous at the prospect of Justin never being the same again."

"I know what you mean he's not the same person who I met when he was twelve, but Ash he's probably just as if not more scared of seeing everyone as you are of seeing him again. Just give him some time and you'll probably start recognising elements of the old Justin in him, it might not be a bad thing that he's changed especially with the situation he's in now."

It was the most Andros had said at once in a while, and he wasn't sure if a lot of it had made sense but Ashley's answering smile and kiss was worth it. They didn't know a lot about what had happened to Justin.

Tommy had been vague when he'd called; simply telling them that Justin no longer lived with his father after a tragic accident which had resulted in Justin's new status of being mute. That it was best if they gave Justin his space for a while and let him settle in, essentially saying that they weren't allowed contact. It had been a riot for himself, Karone and Zhane trying to stop the others from all from descending upon Reefside Orphanage.

"Come on," Ashley snapped him out of his thoughts, "Let's go tell the others and then we'll give him a proper greeting."


End file.
